Slip-ring arrangements having a slip ring and a sliding-contact element, such as e.g. what is referred to as a brush, form a sliding contact or a brush bridge which permits electrical power or a signal to be transmitted between components which rotate with respect to one another. In particular, slip-ring arrangements can be used in generators, synchronous machines and turbo generators to feed the necessary exciter voltage from a static exciter device into exciter windings of the rotor by means of the sliding contacts of the slip-ring arrangement.
Such slip-ring arrangements have to be cooled in order to conduct away the temperatures which arise as a result of friction and current.
Furthermore, the mechanical friction on the sliding contact results in friction dust which has to be carried away, since otherwise it can adversely affect the functional capability of the sliding-contact device and, in particular, its electrical contact-forming properties.